Just A Number
by Dreaming of dance
Summary: AU. The age difference never seemed to matter, to her it was just a number.


Hey there. I tried writing something new to hopefully get my inspiration going so that I can update my other stories. Even though I did manage to get this one shot done, I'm still having major writers block on my other stories. So for those of you that are waiting for updates I'm sorry. Here's a little story in the meantime.

I don't own JN, although I've been re-watching all the episodes and wish they would make a new season =(

* * *

When she was born, he was eight years old.

Jimmy'a family had recently moved to Retroville because his dad had gotten a new job. It was a nice town with friendly neighbors. Directly across the street lived the Vortex family. A husband, and at the time, his very pregnant wife.

A week later after the Neutrons moved, the couple from across the street had their baby. Of course all of the neighbors wanted to see the new bundle of joy, and his parents were no different. His mother absolutely adored babies and was overjoyed once the Vortexes announced that they were finally allowing visitors.

He remembered walking into a pink nursery. There was an overall calm quiet in the room, which he didn't expect considering that the family had a new born. In a rocking chair sat the mother cradling her baby in her arms. Judy nudged him on the back encouraging him to go ahead.

The young genius was very silent about walking over to and her baby because he assumed the infant girl was sleeping. When he finally was close enough he noticed that the baby wasn't asleep at all.

She was such a small creature. With the tiniest fingers he had ever seen on a person. He was a boy genius, so of course he knew about how babies were formed, from when they were an embryo until they were now that he was seeing such a new baby in person he almost didn't believe it was possible for a human being to be so tiny. She had a small tuff of blonde hair on top of her head and her skin looked like smooth porcelain. The baby had rosy cheeks that matched her little pink mouth and he thought she could have passed for a doll. What he noticed the most though was that she had these big, emerald green eyes that were staring up at him.

"Oh she's so beautiful!" He heard his mother say in awe to the infant's mother. Jimmy just kept staring back at the baby and it was as if they were trying to figure each other out.

"Would you like to hold her?" He didn't realize the question was directed at him at first and was a little jolted at the idea of holding someone so fragile.

"It's okay Jimmy." His mother reassured behind him. Before he knew it the baby was being handed to him and he was being instructed on how to hold her. She stirred a little bit until she was settled into his arms. He could hear his mother cooing about how adorable they looked and how she wish she had brought her camera.

"What's her name?" He found himself asking although he never took his eyes off of the baby.

"Cynthia, Cindy for short." He thought the name over and found he liked it. Then Jimmy smiled down at her because there was something about holding her that made him happy, though he couldn't pinpoint what exactly.

He was shocked when she formed a tiny smile of her own even though it was brief and he decided right then that she was the most perfect thing in the world.

* * *

When she was three she was a handful.

Oh how he missed the days when she was a quiet little baby that barely ever cried or made a fuss. Now she was always running around and asking a billion questions and getting into any trouble she could find. Although the extent of the "trouble" she found was spilling juice or coloring on the walls.

"Jimmy Jimmy Jimmy Jimmy!" She exclaimed as she was running across his front lawn, wearing a pink dress with her hair in pig tails. To anyone she might have been the epitome of cuteness, but right now he was wondering if she was the spawn of Satan. Jimmy was supposed to be watching her while her mother was running an errand and it was proving to be impossible to get her to sit still for more than two seconds.

"Cindy will you slow down!" Now he was chasing her because he was getting paranoid that she was going to run into on coming traffic.

"You have to catch me first Neutwon!" Cindy was still having trouble pronouncing her r's, but had concluded that she liked to call him her version of his last name.

Jimmy came to a halt to catch his breath for a moment, for such a tiny person he didn't know how she had so much energy. She kept on running and giggling and wasn't even paying attention to where she was going.

Then it happened in what felt like slow motion to him. She tripped over herself and fell on the hard pavement of the driveway and he felt like his heart stopped. He immediately was running over to her and was picking the now crying child off of the ground.

"Shhh it's going to be okay, it's just a little scrape." Cindy was still sobbing and was sporting matching cuts on both of her knees.

"You have to be careful Cindy." He brought her into his house and sat her on top of the kitchen counter. He ran and got the first aid kit started to clean her cuts.

"Ow!" She yelled and kicked him when he was putting hydrogen peroxide on her wounds. Jimmy grunted, not only did she have a lot of energy she was also really strong for her age.

"It's almost over, I promise, but if you don't sit still I can't make it better okay?" Tears were still coming down her pretty face but she nodded and finally didn't move. Soon enough he was putting colorful band aids on her knees and she was all bandaged up, even though she was still sniffling.

"All done. See that wasn't so bad was it?" She nodded her head, her blonde pigtails bouncing in the process. Then she threw her arms around his neck and held onto him. He knew that she wasn't hurt that badly, she was just more startled than anything. He picked her back up off of the counter and began to walk to the fridge.

"Would ice cream make you feel better?" She nodded into his shoulder profusely. He sighed, he was going to add fuel to the fire by giving her sugar but he couldn't stand to see her upset. Hopefully her mother wouldn't catch on that he let her have ice cream before dinner.

* * *

When she was eight she had decided that she was in love with him.

Everyone who knew her thought it was just a silly crush. Her parents knew that he was practically her idol and she wanted to be just like him. She was always following him into the lab, even when he said it would be boring, but she didn't care. She always just wanted to watch him work on his inventions and experiments. She got in the way sometimes and persistently insisted on helping him. It was a distraction, but he couldn't say no to her.

"What are you doing today?" Cindy asked while looking over his shoulder. He didn't know how she did it, but she always found a way to get into the lab no matter what security system he installed.

"I'm just working on an engine for my new rocket ship, nothing exciting."

"Will you take me on it when it's done?"

"Maybe."

"Maybe?" She said with the attitude she was known for having.

"You know how your parents get. Remember the last time I took you in the hover car? I can still hear your mother yelling at me for 'putting your life in danger' and 'not thinking responsibly' I don't think you realize how scary your mom can be."

"She doesn't have to know." She said indignantly. Jimmy sighed, which he often found himself doing in regards to Cindy. He knew she would get what she wanted, she always did. So he decided to change the subject instead.

"You can't stay for too long, Kira is coming over." Cindy scoffed. Kira was his girlfriend and the constant reminder that the guy she liked was infatuated with someone else. Cindy was jealous that she had to share his attention, and didn't like the idea that her love for him was truly one sided. She wasn't a dumb girl though, and she could count. She knew he was twice her age right now, and that in his eyes she was just a little girl that he had known since she was a baby. She couldn't help it though if she got butterflies when he was around.

"Why don't you like her?"

"I just don't, do I need a reason?" She said defensively. He wasn't in the mood to argue with her because nine times out of ten she won. So he kept on working on his project.

"Whatever." She dismissed him and made to leave. She just needed to have patience. She would wait and maybe when she was older, he would return her feelings.

* * *

When she was ten, he was leaving for college.

Cindy was devastated but pretended she wasn't phased by it as Jimmy was finishing packing up his car. She would only see him every couple of months now. She stood on the sidewalk across the street and watched as he was hugging his parents goodbye. From the length of the hug he gave his mom she could tell that she must have been crying or getting emotional, or both. Eventually they pulled away and she saw his mom wipe her eyes. He was about to get into his car when he spotted her. He jogged across the street to where she was and she waved almost shyly. She honestly didn't know what to say.

"I'm not going to be around to make sure you stay out of trouble twenty-four seven, so take care of yourself."

"Me? In trouble? Never." He laughed and shook his head, and she pretended to laugh as well.

"Just keep being a good student. Make me proud." She rolled her eyes.

"You sound like my parents Neutron." There was a span of silence and impulsively she hugged him as tightly as she could and he hugged her back. She pulled away first before she could start tearing up. How embarrassing would it be if she was in crying? What would he say to that?

"All right, I got to get going." The blonde didn't respond but waved goodbye as he went back across the street, got into his car, and drove away.

She cried herself to sleep that night.

* * *

When she was fourteen he surprised her.

Cindy was a freshman in high school now, and Jimmy had already graduated college more than a year ago because lets face it, he was smarter than all of his professors combined. She missed him more than she would ever say out loud, and he would visit every now and then, but the spaces between the visits were getting larger. He was working on building up his corporation and was already a world renowned scientist. He was busy, and didn't have time for her.

She was exiting school after the final bell had rung when she heard a car horn honking incessantly. It got her attention because normally parents who were coming to pick up their children would either: casually sit in the parking lot, or call their teenagers on their cell phones to let them know they were there. Naturally the horn got her attention, and probably the entire student body as well.

When she recognized the car that was making so much noise she swore she had on the biggest smile that she had in a while. She tried to contain her excitement as she walked to the car.

"What are you doing here!"

"Are you going to get in the car or are you going to stand there." Cindy was so surprised that she obeyed his request without her usual way of getting an attitude with him for telling her what to do. She was thrown by how handsome he was and how Jimmy was very much a grown man and the butterflies that had been dormant while he was gone sprung back to life with full force.

"So what are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be making the world a better place or some shit like that?" She questioned as they were pulling out of the parking lot.

"Am I not allowed to visit? And don't curse." She ignored his little reprimand.

"How long are you staying?"

"Just until tomorrow." She broke a little bit at that. She barely ever got to see him and more than anything she was afraid that he was going to forget her. Cindy was taken out of her thoughts when he started a new conversation.

"How's high school? Do you like it?"

"It's all right."

"Getting straight A's?"

"Always, is that even a serious question?"

"I guess not. C'mon you're too cynical for your age. Tell me more about school."

"It's high school, you already know what it's like."

"You better not be drinking or partying."

"I'm not! I don't hang out with the popular crowd. I'm too nerdy and awkward."

"There is nothing wrong with being nerdy, I turned out just fine."

"Sure you did."

"Besides, you're not awkward."

"Oh yes I am, I'm skinny and weird looking."

"What are you talking about? You're the prettiest girl I know." She was blushing all the way up to her ears and wouldn't look at him to avoid embarrassment.

"Do you have a lot of homework?" She shook her head, still not wanting look him in the eye.

"Good, because I was thinking we could go to the Candy Bar, my treat."

"Kay." Cindy didn't understand how a comment, that he presumed as innocent, could turn her into mush.

* * *

When she was seventeen she caught him off guard.

The blonde beauty had been locked in her room for the past five hours studying her ass off. She told her parents that she didn't want to be disturbed unless the house was burning down or something to that effect, so when her mom was knocking on her door she was already annoyed.

"What do you want Mom?" Mrs. Vortex opened the door despite her daughters requests.

"Cynthia do not take that kind of tone with me, and I thought you would like to know that Jimmy is visiting for the weekend."

"Oh thank god." She exclaimed and was already jumping off of her bed and gathering all of her textbooks.

"Be back later!" She called over her shoulder while she ran down the stairs and across the street. The door was answered after she rang the doorbell three times by the genius himself, and for a moment he was stunned. Maybe it was because he didn't see her as often as he used to, but either way he was asking himself when the hell did she grow up into this woman with curves and the ability to take his breath away.

"You need to help me study." She was already brushing past him and going up the stairs to his childhood bedroom.

"Nice to see you too Cindy..."

She was spreading out her textbooks on his bed when he caught up to her.

"AP exams start tomorrow and I could use your help."

"Knowing you, you probably already have been studying for weeks, so I doubt you need my help."

"Jimmy, please." She was staring up at him from her place on his bed with her gorgeous eyes and he was starting to think that studying was the last thing he wanted to do, but then he had a brief parallel flashback of the first time he met her. It was enough to remind him that he was twenty-five and that he needed to banish these thoughts of attraction to the back of his mind.

"What do you want help on?" He went to sit next to her on his bed.

"Physics, I think I'm okay with everything else."

Two hours later Cindy was close to throwing her physics textbook out of the window. They were now laying on their stomachs side by side, her textbook open in front of them

"My brain is going to explode, I'm done."

"You're going to be fine, I don't know why you're worrying."

"Easy for you to say, you never had to study."

"This is true." She rolled her eyes and shoved him in the shoulder.

"Cocky." It was then that she noticed the proximity of their bodies. His right side was touching her left and their heads were less than a foot apart from each other. She could smell his cologne, which made her want bury her face into his neck. He was thinking along similar lines because her shampoo smelled like jasmine and he was drowning in it. She felt heat on every part of her that was touching him, and unbeknownst to her, so did he.

"Uh so anyway...I heard that you decided on Harvard. What are you majoring in?" He was trying to lead the conversation to a place where it would distract his thoughts.

"If I tell you, you can't laugh."

"Why would I laugh?"

"Because you don't take me seriously."

"Yes I do."

"No you don't. You act like I'm still a child." It had a double meaning for her that she was sure he wouldn't catch, but it was true, he treated her like a little kid.

"I can't help it, I've been around-"

"Practically since I was born. I KNOW." He could see what she was getting at.

"Pre-med."

"You want to be a doctor?"

"Neurosurgeon."

"That's...serious."

"See I knew you were going to say something like that you big jerk." She attempted to get up to leave but he had grabbed onto her hand.

"Look I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that. I guess it's about time that I realize that you're all grown up." Under his breath, and before his brain filter could work, he said "you sure look grown up."

"Excuse me?" She leaned in closer to him, hoping he would repeat what he murmured.

"Nothing."

"No, I heard you say something." Jimmy knew by now that nothing got past her, and she wouldn't stop pestering him until he told her.

"I meant...I mean look at you..." She was biting her bottom lip because she felt like she had been waiting for something like this for so long. She glanced down to see that they were still holding hands, and felt her face starting to heat up. He followed her gaze to their hands. He pulled his away from hers slowly, but then ran his fingers up the back of her hand, past her forearm, across shoulder, and up to the soft skin of her cheek. Cindy was frozen under his touch and felt herself not being able to breathe.

They were so close, and she swore she wasn't imagining that he was leaning further into her. He was going to kiss her, she was positive, just a couple more inches. Cindy even closed her eyes while she waited for the inevitable.

Except it never came.

Jimmy was only a millimeter away from pressing his lips against her's when reality came rushing back to him and halted him to a complete stop. Then he was panicking, because he realized what he almost did. Yes, he thought she was beautiful and smart and probably the girl of his dreams. She was still just an underage girl though, and he knew he had no business in being intimate with a minor.

Despite whatever he was feeling, he knew right from wrong.

"Uh, it's getting late, you should get some sleep since you have a test tomorrow." Cindy blinked open her eyes and her heart filled with disappointment. She brushed it off and feigned being aloof to what had just transpired.

"Yeah, yeah you're right." She gathered up her things, trying not to look or come off as dejected.

"I'll see you later?" Cindy said hopefully. He gave her a half smile and then nodded. When she was out the door he let out a deep breath and rubbed his temples. All of the while he was thinking what the hell just happened.

* * *

When she was nineteen she asked him for a favor.

It was the first semester of her sophomore year of college. Somehow it had gotten out to her chemistry professor that she knew Jimmy Neutron, who had already received a Nobel Prize and many other awards for his inventions. Her teacher had all but begged her to get him to come in and give a lecture and she had said she would try.

It had taken some serious persuasion on her part, but eventually Jimmy agreed.

After the deed was done, he was talking to her professor and a couple of other teachers that had come to sit in on the lecture when Cindy approached him.

"I swear, the things I do for you." He said when he acknowledged her.

"Oh shut up, you enjoy it."

"So how do you know each other?" A female teacher asked, concerned at how casual Cindy was acting around someone who was so highly regarded.

"I'm her babysitter." He was teasing her and only threw that in to piss her off. She showed her disdain to his answer by scoffing loudly and trying to refrain from hitting him.

"We were neighbors. He lived across the street." Then she added in a strained voice through her teeth. "What are you trying to do, embarrass me?"

"Only a little." He commented back to her before addressing the rest of the group.

"I'm only joking. So tell me, is she being a good student?" Cindy rolled her eyes while thinking 'here we go'.

"I'm not at liberty to say that while she is in our presence." Her chemistry professor added. Jimmy shrugged and reached into his pocket before pulling out a ten dollar bill and handing it to Cindy.

"Go get me coffee."

"What?" She raised an eyebrow at his random demand.

"I can't talk about you behind your back if you're here, now shoo." She grabbed the bill out of his hand, obviously peeved.

"The things I do for you." She mocked, using his words from earlier. She shook her head then exited the room.

A couple of hours later after Jimmy had spent some time grilling her about college over dinner they had arrived back on her college campus. She was reluctant to say goodbye but opened the passengers door to leave despite her mixed emotions. She was surprised when she heard the drivers door open as well.

"What are you doing?"

"Walking you to your dorm building, it's late." Although she liked the idea and it made her feel all warm inside at his protectiveness, she objected to it out loud.

"It's not that late and I've walked back to my room by myself many times before. I'm a big girl now." He rolled his eyes at the dash of sarcasm in her tone.

"I know you're a 'big girl' I just want to make sure you're safe."

"Do you really?"

"Want to make that you're safe? Of course."

"No, I mean do you really know that I'm not a little girl anymore. You claim to, but do you really?"

"Cindy, what are you talking about?"

She turned around and took a couple steps away from him, ready to drop the subject, but then she changed her mind and turned back around. She let out a deep breath before she closed the expanse of the space between them, framed his face with both of her hands, and placed her lips against his.

The kiss was tender yet firm. At first she had been meaning to get her point across, but now that she was kissing Jimmy after years of waiting, she couldn't help it when her cheeks flushed. Kissing him felt like being on fire.

He was in too much shock to respond, he neither kissed her back or pulled away from her. Jimmy was stunned into place, not really believing that she would ever do something so bold. He would be lying if he said he didn't feel an instant spark rush through his body, but this action was something that was unfathomable to him.

When Cindy pulled away she stared up into his wide blue eyes trying to gauge what his reaction was. The loss of warmth when she took her hands away from his face was what prompted him to open his mouth.

"W-What-"

"I love you." She blurted it out before she could think about what she was saying, but once she started she couldn't stop.

"I have been in love with you my entire life. I love you so much that I can barely think coherent thoughts around you and it drives me crazy that all you will ever see me as is this little girl that you have to take care of. I have never felt this way before about anyone else and I never will. I wish I didn't feel this way but I do and I can't stop." Cindy let out a deep breath after her confession halted. She stared at his face that held a baffled expression. What felt like an eternity of time passed and he still hadn't said anything. That itself was as good as a rejection in Cindy's eyes.

"I'm such an idiot." Then she was walking away as fast as her feet could carry her while try to keep the tears from falling. The only thing that stopped her was the hand that wrapped around her wrist; but she refused to turn around. She was already embarrassed enough already and didn't need him to see her break down like this.

"Cindy, just wait a minute." She didn't utter a word and didn't move.

"There are a hundreds of reasons why we shouldn't be together."

"Like what?" She forced herself to keep her voice calm.

"Cindy you know why." She rounded on him and gave up any thoughts of being calm. At this point it didn't matter to her how she sounded.

"You're older than me, so what?"

"Eight years is quite the age gap."

"I don't care!"

"What would people think? What would you're parents think?"

"It doesn't matter what people think! I only care about what you think!"

"It's not that simple!"

"Yes, it is! What are you so afraid of?" Then a thought struck her, and an almost evil smile formed on her lips as she began to approach him again. "You're afraid. That's what it is. You feel the same way and it scares you."

"That's ridiculous. What makes you say that."

"Because if you didn't then this would be easy, but here you are, trying to convince me why this is a bad idea, except you're not trying to convince me, you're trying to convince yourself." He clenched his jaw, frustrated at her accusations.

"What's wrong Neutron? Are you mad that I'm right? That you can't talk you're way out of this-" He didn't let her continue because he had pulled her body flush against his and kissed her so deeply that she felt it all the way down to her toes. Her fingers tangled in his hair as she responded to the kiss with everything that she had. She let out a soft moan when his tongue glided against her bottom lip and she opened up her mouth to him. She had never felt so much passion in her life and would have been happy to continue doing this for the rest of eternity.

Eternity would have to wait though because slowly the kiss softened and Jimmy pulled away. Cindy held a smug look as she looked up at him.

"I do love you...but that doesn't change how I feel about this." Her heart plummeted as quickly as it had soared at this statement. "I'm sorry." He then kissed her on the forehead, left her to get into his car, and drove away.

And she broke.

* * *

When she was twenty-one they were interrogated.

The tension in the air was so thick that both sets of parents were at a loss of how to diffuse it. The Vortexes and the Neutrons had planned to spend Christmas together as a surprise for Jimmy and Cindy. They knew that they hadn't really seen each other in two years and wanted to reunite the long time friends. What they didn't know was that the pair weren't speaking and were avoiding each other like the plague. To make matters worse, they were stuck sitting next to one another at the dinner table.

"So Cindy, how is school going." Judy asked trying to fill the awkward silence in the room.

"It's good." She replied shortly, not even looking up from her plate. Judy tried a different approach.

"Jimmy, sweetie, how is work, I hope you aren't stressing yourself out too much."

"I'm not." He said in a similar fashion that Cindy had. Judy sighed at her failure at making conversation. She couldn't figure out what had happened that had caused so much tension.

Hugh on the other hand didn't try to break the ice as gracefully as Judy had tried.

"So Jim, you're going to be thirty soon, it's about time you started thinking about settling down." Jimmy choked on his food. Cindy smirked wondering where this conversation would lead. What she didn't expect was for her father to join in on this turn of events.

"You know, Cindy's twenty one now, well over the age of a legal adult." Cindy looked up with intrigue and raised a golden eyebrow. What was her father trying to say? Now Jimmy had the look of a deer caught in the headlights.

"I think what your father is trying to say Cynthia-" Her mother began but then Hugh cut her off with excitement of a child with a secret.

"When are you two going to get married? I mean seriously, we didn't think it would take this long! As soon as Cindy turned eight-teen we thought that you two would finally get together! So what's the hold up?"

There were moments of stunned silence at the bluntness of the words that had come from Hugh's mouth, then without a word Cindy got up out of her chair and stormed out of the room.

"Was it something I said?" Hugh added after she had left.

She had gone on a walk to clear her head and get away from the prying parents. When she arrived back at the pink house that she had grown up in, Jimmy was sitting on the top step of her front porch. When he saw her he patted the space next to him, motioning for her to sit down. Cindy was hesitant but took the spot to the right of him.

They sat there in silence for a long time. Neither of them knowing how to break the ice. There were so many things that each of them wanted to say but couldn't find the words. Cindy waited and waited for Jimmy to say something. She figured that he would at some point since he was the one who had initiated the meeting, yet he was still completely quiet. Cindy was contemplating getting up and leaving before she felt him taking her hand. She let out a sigh but didn't spare him a glance. It was hard enough being so close to him with the weight of their last conversation on her mind. She was concentrating so hard on keeping her hand from trembling and her breathing even that she almost didn't catch when he had put something on her finger.

"Just say yes. I know I screwed up, but I'm willing to spend the rest of our lives making it up to you." Cindy didn't understand at first what he was trying to tell her, or rather show her, until she looked at her hand that was still in his. Her breath caught in her throat at the diamond ring that was shining up at her. Then she looked up at him expectantly, wanting some sort of explanation for his change of heart.

"I got it a couple months ago. I didn't know what else I could do to convince you that I was wrong about us." Cindy was speechless. Could she really forgive him after what he put her through?

"Can you please say something? You know I'm not good with apologies or admitting that I'm wrong." The stubborn side of her wanted to make him sweat, make him beg more, but the hopeless romantic side of her wanted to give into the fairytale ending. She sighed deeply.

"You broke my heart..."

"I know."

"But I guess I have no other choice but to marry you anyway." The dejected look that had taken up residence on his face turned into a look of joy.

"Really?" The way that she threw her arms around his neck and tackled him with kisses was enough of an answer for him.

* * *

When she was twenty six she gave him a very precious gift.

Jimmy had just gotten home after a long day at work, while running on four hours of sleep. Right now all he wanted to do is collapse onto his bed and sleep for the next two days. He didn't even have the slightest inclination to do any kind of science experiment. He just wanted was some rest and he felt that there was nothing that would stop him. Not even if the world was being taken over and was in desperate need of rescuing. Those had been his thoughts before he walked into the bedroom of his house. He stood in the doorway as his eyes rested upon the sight that was on his bed.

Cindy was on the soft comforter bouncing with their six month old son. He was making the happiest gurgling noises and had a one toothed smile on his face. Cindy noticed him standing in the doorway and put their baby down onto the bed.

"Look Jack, Daddy's home!" Said baby looked up at him with Jimmy's same blue eyes and reached out his tiny arms. Jimmy went and picked up his son, putting a kiss on his blonde head. He joined Cindy on their bed and kissed her softly on the lips. He began to play with his little family thinking that his life turned out better than he could have imagined.

Sleep could wait for later.


End file.
